Support for table legs and the like



April 4, 1967 D. A. GOETZ ETAL 3,312,438

SUPPORT FOR TABLE LEGS AND THE LIKE Filed Nov. 29, 1965 v 2 Sheets-Sheet 1 INVENTORS. DAN/EL A. 60572 Y M/LA/V 6205 54 April 4, 1967 D. A. GOETZ ETAL SUPPORT FOR TABLE LEGS AND THE LIKE 2 Sheets-Sheet 2 Filed Nov. 29, 1965 INVENTORS. DAN/5L A. GOETZ M/LA/V 64 055, BY wbu 6%, 64.4% WM ATTOR/VEVS.

United States Patent G 3 312 438 SUPPORT FOR TABIJE LEGS AND THE LIKE Daniel A. Goetz, Mount Lebanon, and Milan Gruber, Aliquippa, Pa., assignors to Stylette Plastics, Inc., Oak- FIGURE 3 is a side elevation view of a table with the support of FIGURE 1 locating and holding the legs of the table;

FIGURE 4 is a perspective view of a second embodidale Pa. 5 ment of our support; Y F Filed Nov. 29, 1965, Ser. No. 510,348 IGURE 1s a plan view of the support of FIGURE 5 Claims. (C1. 5 4 tith table regs positioned and mounted by the support;

an The invention relates to a support for legs of a table, FIGURE 6 is a perspective view of a third embodiment stand, stool, pedestal or other similar article of manufacof our support. ture wherein the support receives and detachably retains Referring to FIGURES 1, 2 and 3, the support A is a the legs in a vertical position for mounting the top of a single piece made from high density polyethylene in an table or the seat of a stool, etc. This support has special injection molding process and comprises a central cylinutility for tables which are sold and marketed disassemdrical base member 1. Extending longitudinally of the bled and are easily assembled by a purchaser who atbase member is an axial bore 2 with an opening 3 at tached three legs, for example, to the support and then one end and a closure 4 at the other end. mounts the top of the table upon the legs. The legs In FIGURE 3 the support holds together three legs are simply snapped into sockets of the support and there (2 legs 5 and 6 being shown) of a table 7 in a vertical retained by arms or fingers which are joined to the supposition and this support is the major element which report and define the socket. These arms are made from tains the three legs in vertical alignment and position. a material which has both resiliency to permit insertion Spaced apart an equal distance around the periphery of the leg into and its removal from the socket, and semiof the base member 1 and extending longitudinally for rigidity which enables the arms to retain and maintain the the length of the base member are three socket-defining leg in a vertical position for mounting the table top. elements 8, 9 and 10, integral with the base member 1. Heretofore, in many instances, assembly of legs of a As shown, each element comprises a pair of arms or table included use of screws, bolts, washers and nuts, fingers 11 and 12 which extend outwardly from the brackets, clamps, clips and various other kinds of f asperiphery of the base member with their outer ends 13 teners, and use of tools such as screwdrivers, pliers, and 14 space-d apart. The two arms form interiorly wrenches, etc. Also, when the table Was sold disassemtherebetween a socket 15 which conforms to a cylindrical bled, detailed instructions for assembly and sometimes a leg of the table and which has a cross-sectional dimension number of illustrations depicting stages or steps of assuch that the interior walls of the socket engage the exsembly Wererequired. terior surface of the leg for substantially the length of The support of this invention renders assembly of the socket. legs of a table, stool, and the like extremely simple and The outer ends of the arms 11 and 12 are spaced apart quick, and eliminates any need for screws, bolts, nuts, to form an opening 16 into the socket and are a distance fasteners, clamps, etc., as well as tools. Furthermore, apart such that a leg can be entered into the socket and instructions for assembly can be brief, direct and easy once disposed therein the arms retain and maintain the to follow when the support is the element which receives leg in a vertical position to support the table. However, and maintains the legs in their required vertical posithis distance between the outer ends of the arms is also tion. Specifically, the support comprises a base member such that the leg can be removed from the socket. As with at least two socket-defining elements joined thereto shown, the arms extend around the periphery of the leg and disposed therearound to vertically support the legs more than half way. of a table. Each socket element comprises a pair of We have found that for a leg in diameter, the disarms which extend outwardly from the base member tance between the outer ends 13 and 14 of the arms 11 which define interiorly therebetween at least a portion of and 12 i about f the diameter f the leg a substantially vertically extending socket for receiving and h f a 1 diameter leg the distance between and detachably engaging. a POrtion of the ffi a the outer ends of the arms is about 78%-85% of the leg h table which are made from reslhent diameter of the leg. Thus, the distance between the outer semi-rigid matenal. The outer ends of each pair of ends of the arms must not be Greater than about arms are spaced apart to form an opening into the socket. 50 of the d-amet f th 1 The distance between the outer ends is such that the 0 e ihty to insert a leg into the socket, to maintain 1t portion of the length of the leg can be inserted into the h k d a d socket and such that the arms detachably retain the leg Wlt e SOC at Servlc" an remove iherein. from 13 dependent upon the material from which the In the accompanying drawings, we have Shown three 55 arms are made and upon the distance between the outer preferred embodiments of our invention in which: ends of these arms. Th s material must be both resilient FIGURE 1 is a plan View f one embodimgnt f our and semi-rigid and its yield point is not exceeded by atsupport; tachment and detachment of the legs.

FIGURE 2 is a side elevation view of the support of Polyethylenes from which the supports of FIGURES FIGURE 1; 6O 1-5 can be made have the following physical properties:

ASTM I One Specific Polyethylene Property Test Pro- Units Polyethylene Range cedure Density D1505 G./cc 0. 960 0. 945-0. 965 Melt Index D1238. G./l0 minutes... 12.0 1-20 Tensile Yield D638 P.s.i 3,800 1, 2005, 000 Stifiness 100,000 15, coo-160,000 Impact Strength- Ft. lbs/inch of 0.8 0. 5 Hardness (Shore D") D1706 .2 3 69 40-80 Brittlencss Temperature. D746 "F l00 0 Other examples of materials for the support include polypropylene, polycarbonate, polystyrene, a thermoplastic resin [-(-OCH polyamide and possibly some metals such as steel, aluminum, etc.

FIGURES 4 and 5 show a second embodiment of the support which is substantially the same as that of FIG- URES 1, 2 and 3 except that there are two socket-defining elements 28 and 21spaced diametrically apart around the base member 22. These two socket-defining elements receive table legs 23 and 24, each of which have two foot members 25 and 26 as shown.

FIGURE 6 shows a third embodiment of the support which has been used for /2 diameter rods for a table. In this embodiment, the base member 30 partially defines each socket of the three sockets 31, 32 and 33, and the arms 34 and 35 of the three socket-defining elements 36, 37 and 38 define the remainder of the socket with the outer ends of the arms extending more than half way around the periphery of a rod inserted into the socket. 01": course, the outer ends of the arms are spaced apart to form an opening into each socket.

While we have shown and described the preferred embodiments of our invention, it may otherwise be embodied Within the scope of the appended claims.

We claim:

1. In a table structure and the like having a horizontal top and at least two legs for carrying the top, each of said legs having a substantially vertically extending portion, said portions being laterally spaced apart from one another, the combination with said legs of at least one support for receiving and detachably retaining the legs in such spaced relation, said support being made of a resilient, semi-rigid material and comprising:

(A) a base member; and

(B) at least two socket-defining elements integral with the base member, each of said elements including a pair of arms which extend outwardly from the base member to form therebetween a substantially vertically extending socket for receiving and detachably engaging said vertically extending portion of a leg of the table, the outer ends of each pair of arms forming an opening into the socket and being spaced apart a distance not greater than the maximum crosssectional dimension of said vertically extending portion of a leg which is to be inserted therebetween,

such that when each of the legs is inserted into a socket in the support the arms of the socket detachably retain the legs therein to support the top of the structure.

2. In a table structure as set forth in claim 1, and wherein the base member partially forms each socket defining element, such that the base member is solid throughout its entire length.

3. In a table structure as set forth in claim 1 wherein the base member is a cylindrical member to which the socket-defining elements are integrally joined, the cylindrical member having an axial bore therein which extends substantially the length of the support, said bore being closed on an end to provide rigidity to the support to prevent compression of the bore when a leg is inserted into a socket of the support.

4. In a table structure as set forth in claim 1, wherein the table legs are circular in cross-section and the outer ends of each pair of arms are spaced apart a distance not greater than of the diameter of a leg to be detachably retained thereby.

5. In a table structure as set forth in claim 4, wherein the outer end of each pair of arms extends more than 25% around the circumference of a leg to be detachably retained thereby.

References Cited by the Examiner UNITED STATES PATENTS 398,508 2/1889 Hatch 248-229 X 1,477,233 12/1923 Alexander 248- X 1,548,410 8/1925 Derbyshire 248-165 X 1,959,633 5/1934 Madden 138-12 2,388,297 11/ 1945 Slaughter 154-42 2,639,820 5/1953 Lee 211-163 2,764,379 9/1956 Schmidt 248-158 2,902,821 9/1959 Kelly 59-80 3,043,902 7/1962 Klein 174-146 3,084,892 4/ 1963 Priestley et a] 248-61 FOREIGN PATENTS 1,003,303 2/1957 Germany.

451,510 9/1949 Italy.

560,916 4/1957 Italy.

CLAUDE A. LE ROY, Primary Examiner. 

1. IN A TABLE STRUCTURE AND THE LIKE HAVING A HORIZONTAL TOP AND AT LEAST TWO LEGS FOR CARRYING THE TOP, EACH OF SAID LEGS HAVING A SUBSTANTIALLY VERTICALLY EXTENDING PORTION, SAID PORTIONS BEING LATERALLY SPACED APART FROM ONE ANOTHER, THE COMBINATION WITH SAID LEGS OF AT LEAST ONE SUPPORT FOR RECEIVING AND DETACHABLY RETAINING THE LEGS IN SUCH SPACED RELATION, SAID SUPPORT BEING MADE OF A RESILIENT, SEMI-RIGID MATERIAL AND COMPRISING: (A) A BASE MEMBER; AND (B) AT LEAST TWO SOCKET-DEFINING ELEMENTS INTEGRAL WITH THE BASE MEMBER, EACH OF SAID ELEMENTS INCLUDING A PAIR OF ARMS WHICH EXTEND OUTWARDLY FROM THE BASE MEMBER TO FORM THEREBETWEEN A SUBSTANTIALLY VERTICALLY EXTENDING SOCKET FOR RECEIVING AND DETACHABLY ENGAGING SAID VERTICALLY EXTENDING PORTION OF A LEG OF THE TABLE, THE OUTER ENDS OF EACH PAIR OF ARMS FORMING AN OPENING INTO THE SOCKET AND BEING SPACED APART A DISTANCE NOT GREATER THAN THE MAXIMUM CROSSSECTIONAL DIMENSION OF SAID VERTICALLY EXTENDING PORTION OF A LEG WHICH IS TO BE INSERTED THEREBETWEEN, SUCH THAT WHEN EACH OF THE LEGS INSERTED INTO A SOCKET IN THE SUPPORT THE ARMS OF THE SOCKET DETACHABLY RETAIN THE LEGS THEREIN TO SUPPORT THE TOP OF THE STRUCTURE. 